Public Health Role Supporting Antimicrobial Stewardship Across Settings

Key Objectives:
Participants will discuss strategies to address antimicrobial use monitoring and stewardship policies, practices, and activities, and consider practical approaches for implementation.

Brief Summary:
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the world's most pressing public health problems. Recent attention to the issue by CDC and the Administration highlights actions stakeholders can take to combat resistance. State health agencies can help fight AMR by coordinating and facilitating prevention activities, monitoring resistance across the state, leveraging existing partnerships and resources, and developing policies to address improved antimicrobial prescribing and use (stewardship). State health agencies are critical to building important partnerships to address AMR and to implementing stewardship activities across settings. Sharing state examples and best practices to promote judicious use of antibiotics can inform future efforts. ASTHO recently released a report that describes current state-level AMR and stewardship activities and presents a range of options for engagement, giving health agencies at all levels of capacity opportunities to develop or enhance stewardship policies and activities. ASTHO also convened an inaugural meeting between state public health and agricultural officials to explore future collaboration focused on antibiotic stewardship and will convene a second meeting in 2015 focused on antibiotic stewardship in healthcare. During this roundtable, ASTHO and CDC will share recommendations, examples, and tools developed and collected as part of recent efforts. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss antibiotic use monitoring and stewardship efforts underway in their jurisdictions, share learnings, and consider ways to advance stewardship programs and policies. Additional proposed topics for discussion include state-level surveillance, current and needed metrics, and data reporting and analysis.